The Twins acquired Pagan and starting pitcher Chris Paddack from the Padres on Thursday in exchange for reliever Taylor Rogers and outfielder Brent Rooker, Ken Rosenthal of The Athletic reports.
With Rogers moving to San Diego, the Twins will have a void at closer heading into Opening Day, and Pagan could be one of several candidates to vie for saves out of the Minnesota bullpen. Pagan, who is under club control for the next two seasons, is coming off a down 2021 campaign in which he submitted a 4.83 ERA (5.22 FIP) and surrendered a whopping 16 home runs in 63.1 innings. Keeping the ball in the yard has been an ongoing issue for Pagan throughout his career, but he's excelled at making bats miss and limiting free passes, as his lifetime 22.3 K-BB% attests. Even if the Twins aren't inclined to use Pagan in the ninth inning due to his vulnerability to the long ball, he should at least take on a key setup role for his new team.